Chinese scientists claim they can cure grey hair with scalp injections

A Chinese actress has caused a stir after telling fans that she has been having injections to make her greying hair turn black again.  

In a video posted to the Chinese version of TikTok, Douyin, actress Guo Tong, 37, posted that she had started a course of injections which promised to reverse her white patches to their natural colour. 

Speaking in the video, she told fans that her pigmentation issues were not hereditary but related to her stressful lifestyle.

‘My white hair isn’t hereditary—it’s due to irregular lifestyle, emotional stress, and a period of psychological pressure, which caused a lot of stress affecting my hair.

‘I have now finished my tenth treatment. Many people ask me if it works. 

‘Firstly, I was away on a business trip for about three weeks, visiting Beijing and then my hometown, so I missed three sessions. 

‘Secondly, because I was filming, I had dyed my hair black, so it’s not very obvious yet. 

‘But the doctor has taken photos to track progress: some new roots are slowly growing, and one or two strands have turned from white to black at the root. I’m really happy about that.’ 

She added that she felt compelled to seek treatment as it was causing her ‘anxiety’ due to the pressures she faces working as an actress, but has not disclosed how much it cost. 

‘I thought, rather than worrying every day about whether my white hair will increase, it’s better to leave it to the professionals and focus on what I need to do.

‘If it works, I’ll be happy to share my experience. If it doesn’t, I consider it “dead money” or what people call a “wisdom tax”—money spent without a result. That’s fine with me.’ 

According to Yangtse News, the actress was treated at Shanghai Yueyang Hospital. 

One of the hospital’s dermatologists told the outlet that the injections use a type of vitamin B12 known as adenosylcobalamin, which is a concept taken from Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which believes that B12 stimulates melanin synthesis. 

Melanin is a natural pigment made by the body which influences the colour of our hair, skin and eyes. 

Going grey is a natural part of ageing, and is due to the gradual age-related decline of melanocytes, the cells which create melanin, the molecule responsible for hair colour. 

The treatment consists of regular injections administered once a week for three to six months.

But before you start looking for flights to Beijing, Western dermatologists are divided about the treatment.

One consultant dermatologist, Dr Magnus Lynch, explained that when it comes to the procedure, it ‘s difficult to know if the improvement is due to the exosomes or micro needling.

In recent TikTok video that has been viewed more than 70,000 times, Dr Munir Somji, known as Dr Somji Skin, claimed grey hair can be reversed with an injection.

He said it can be done by micro-needling ASCE exosomes—that are thought to promote skin regeneration—into the scalp and even areas of beard.

Dr Somji explained: ‘Looking microscopically at the hair can actually show hairs changing, so white hairs now growing black.’

Then in the video, he showed a before picture of a woman with grey hairs at her roots next to an after picture with none at all. ‘So white hairs now growing black,’ he said.

He continued: ‘Using exosomes you can stimulate melanocyte stem cells within the hair that have become dormant so they can start reproducing melanocytes again.’

These melanocyte cells in the skin produce a pigment called melanin, and ‘are responsible for the pigmentation within your hair’, Dr Somji explained.

He said ‘even after a couple of treatments’ you can ‘maintain your white hairs’ or those ‘pesky greys’ that are bothering you.

While several social media users commented that they were sceptical, one wrote: ‘I’ve tried this and seen a difference.

‘I had it done in April and May. I would say my hair felt thicker, healthier and I started to think there were less greys, but wasn’t sure.

‘By August I definitely noticed less greys—lots of baby hairs too.’ 

But when Daily Mail asked top London-based experts, they were quick to explain that evidence is mostly anecdotal rather than scientific. 

Dr Shirin Lakhani, an aesthetics doctor told the Daily Mail: ‘It is thought to help re-pigmentation of the hairs by stimulating melanocyte activity in the hair follicles.’

And Dr Ed Robinson, a non-surgical cosmetic expert added: ‘There is thought when exosomes are micro needled into the skin they might stimulate melanocyte stem cells to work harder.

‘However, regarding treating grey hair, there is no solid, peer-reviewed clinical evidence that exosome treatments can reliably reverse generalised grey hair.

‘There have been a couple of highly specific, very limited-use cases suggesting the potential for slight darkening hair, but these do not generalise to broader grey hair reversal.

‘At the moment regulatory agencies remain sceptical about using exosomes for this reason and to market this treatment as a cure for greying hair at this stage is misleading at best.’ 

He said: ‘The exosomes are derived from plants so are unlikely to be harmful, but more research is needed, both to ascertain whether there would be any long-term risk and to draw conclusions about its efficacy.’